US President Donald Trump has BLASTED rip-off World Cup ticket prices – after they were justified by Fifa boss Giani Infantino.
World chiefs have been desperate to stay onside with the Trump White House in the build-up to the tournament which starts next month.
But a rift appeared to have opened over the presence of Iran, due to play matches in Los Angeles and Seattle despite the military operation against the Islamic Regime launched by the US and Israel.
And now Trump has put the boot into ticket costs which will see the majority of England fans facing a minimum outlay of more than £5,000 to watch every game if the Three Lions go all the way.
In a telephone interview with the New York Post when the cost of tickets was raised, Trump said: ““I did not know that number.
“I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest with you.”
Trump added: “I haven’t seen that, but I would have to take a look at it.
“If people from Queens and Brooklyn and all of the people that love Donald Trump can’t go, I would be disappointed.
“But, you know, at the same time, it’s an amazing success. I would like to be able to have the people that voted for me to be able to go.”
Trump’s unexpected intervention comes after Infantino told an audience in Los Angeles the prices were merely a reflection of “the most developed entertainment market in the world”.
The Swiss said: “There are certain elements that we need to understand.
“If someone puts a ticket for the Final at $2m (£1.47m) it doesn’t mean that the tickets cost $2m or that somebody will buy these tickets.
“Actually, if somebody buys a ticket for the Final at $2m, I would personally bring him a hot dog and a Coke to make sure that he has a great experience.
“But we have to look at the market. The US is the most developed entertainment market in the world, so we have to apply market rates.
“In the US, it is permitted to resell tickets, so if you were to sell tickets at a price which is too low, these tickets would be resold at a much higher price.
“And as a matter of fact, even though some people are saying that the ticket prices we have are high, they still end up on the resale market at an even higher price, more than double of our price, the price that we put.
“We have 25 per cent actually of the group stage match tickets which can be bought for less than $300 (£220).
“You cannot go to watch in the US a college game, not even speaking about a top professional game of a certain level, for less than $300. And this is the World Cup, which takes place in a country every few decades.”
